Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word.
Look _______ that picture. Isn't it beautiful?
a. on
b. at
c. in
d. by

Answer 1

Hint: A preposition is a function word that combines with a noun or pronoun or noun phrase to form a prepositional phrase that can have an adverbial or adjectival relation to some other word.

Complete solution:
To understand which option is the correct option, we need to first learn the usage of the given prepositions in the options.

‘At’ - In or very near a particular place.
‘In’- Contained by.
‘On’- Positioned at the upper surface of, touching from above.
‘By’- Near or next to.

Let us thus analyze the options given to us in this question:

Option (a.), 'on', suggests seeing above the picture, which does not make sense since it is the picture that is supposed to be seen by the viewer.
Therefore, option (a.) is incorrect.

Option (b.), ‘at', suggests to the viewer to see the picture itself, which is described as beautiful.
Therefore, option (b.) is correct.

Option (c.), ‘in', suggests to the viewer to look inside the picture, which is not possible since the picture doesn’t ‘contain’ anything.
Therefore, option (c.) is incorrect.

Option (d.), ‘by', suggests to the viewer to look near the picture, which does not make sense since it is the picture that is supposed to be seen by the viewer.
Therefore, option (d.) is incorrect as the more appropriate option is option (b.).

Note: In this question, you need to identify first how the objects in question are behaving, which will ultimately define their position or status, and thus their preposition. Apart from that, you have to be well versed with the different contextual meanings of all the prepositions in order to correctly use them.